From the First to the Last — The Resurrection Order and the Life That Follows
Throughout our studies, we have examined Christ as the Firstborn from the dead, the preparation of his spiritual body, the Bride's place within the completed union, and the gathering of those who belong to him.
We have also returned repeatedly to a distinction that must not be overlooked.
The beginning of resurrection is not the completion of the entire work of restoration.
Paul describes an order. Revelation describes those participating in the first resurrection. Daniel speaks of those sleeping in the dust awakening. And Jesus speaks of the dead hearing his voice and living.
But Revelation also describes a second death, one that has no authority over those participating in the first resurrection.
What does that tell us about the people involved, the life they receive, and what remains for those who follow?
Christ — The Firstborn and the Life-Giving Spirit
Paul begins his explanation of resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15 by declaring that Christ has been raised from the dead as the Firstfruits of those who sleep.
He then describes an order: Christ the Firstfruits, afterward those who belong to him at his coming, and then the end, when opposing authority is abolished and the kingdom is delivered to God the Father. Read 1 Corinthians 15:20–28.
Notice the relationship between the beginning and the end.
Christ is the Firstfruits, but those who belong to him follow. And the final enemy to be abolished is death.
This brings us back to our earlier examination of Christ as the First and Last.
The resurrection begins with the Head, yet the spiritual body is not thereby described as having reached its complete fullness.
Paul later distinguishes the natural body from the spiritual body and identifies the Last Adam as a life-giving Spirit. Read 1 Corinthians 15:42–49.
Then consider 2 Corinthians 5:16–17, where Paul says that Christ is no longer known according to flesh and connects being in Christ with becoming a new creation.
We have followed these passages alongside John 14–17, where Jesus speaks of his disciples abiding in him and himself dwelling in them.
Christ is the Head, but those joined to him are not separate from the one spiritual body.
This matters when we examine the resurrection promised to the members.
One Body — Many Members
In 1 Corinthians 12:12, Paul describes the body consisting of many members and concludes, “so also is Christ.”
He then identifies those addressed as Christ's body and members individually. Read 1 Corinthians 12:12–27.
Different members have different responsibilities, yet all belong to one body.
We recently compared this arrangement with the tabernacle.
The Most Holy, the Holy Place, and the courtyard each have their appointed purposes. The priests serve according to their responsibilities, and the work within the dwelling serves a purpose extending beyond it.
Likewise, the spiritual body is not described as one member performing every responsibility.
In Ephesians 2, we have examined the accomplished joining of the two, the one new man, and the household growing into a dwelling place of YHWH (יהוה) in the Spirit. Read Ephesians 2:14–22.
And in Ephesians 4, the body grows toward fullness as its members perform their appointed work.
The differing roles do not divide the body. They contribute to what is being brought toward completion.
This is why we must follow the resurrection order rather than assuming that every member experiences the same appointment.
The Dead in Christ — Who Rises First?
Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 4 that the Lord descends with a commanding shout, the voice of an archangel, and the trumpet of God.
Then the dead in Christ rise first.
Afterward, those who remain alive are gathered together with them. Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17.
That distinction has become important in our recent studies.
There are those who rise first, followed by those who remain.
Now bring in Daniel 12:1–3.
Michael arises during an unparalleled time of trouble. Those found written in the book are delivered, and many sleeping in the dust awaken.
We compared Michael's arising with the archangel's voice, the trumpet, and the awakening described by Paul.
And then we returned to Revelation 11.
The Two Witnesses — The Spirit of Life Enters Them
Revelation 11 describes two witnesses who complete their appointed testimony and are killed.
Their dead bodies lie in the great city spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.
After three and a half days, the Spirit of life from God enters them. They stand upon their feet, hear a great voice from heaven, and ascend. Read Revelation 11:7–12.
In our earlier study, we connected these witnesses with the two sticks of Ezekiel 37 and the singular male and female in God's image.
More recently, we brought their rising alongside Paul's words concerning the dead in Christ rising first.
Notice the recurring relationships.
The Lord who was crucified. The witnesses whose bodies are killed. The Spirit giving life. The heavenly voice. The standing and ascending.
And then the earthquake follows, the second woe passes, and the seventh angel sounds.
The accounts invite us to consider the resurrection of those first in Christ within the larger work of the spiritual body.
The witnesses rise before the seventh trumpet sounds. That sequence matters to our examination of the mystery and its appointed completion.
Revelation 20 — The First Resurrection
Now consider Revelation 20:4–6.
John sees thrones and those seated upon them, with judgment given to them. He describes those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image or received its mark.
They live and reign with Christ for a thousand years.
Then verse 6 describes those who participate in the first resurrection as blessed and holy. Over them, the second death has no authority. They are priests of God and of Christ and reign with him during the thousand years. Read Revelation 20:4–6.
Notice what distinguishes this resurrection.
Those participating receive an assurance concerning the second death.
This is not merely a statement that they have returned to life for a period of time.
The second death has no authority over them.
That distinction deserves attention when we later examine the great crowd and the wider resurrection and judgment.
And remember the description of those faithful through suffering.
Their testimony and refusal to worship the beast belong to the account. Faithfulness is not reduced to outward profession.
They are described through what they endured and what they refused to do.
Faithful Through Death — Not Merely Protected from It
We have examined the promise to Philadelphia concerning protection from the hour of trial.
Smyrna, however, receives a message involving imprisonment, tribulation for ten days, and faithfulness even to death.
Jesus promises the crown of life and says the conqueror will not be harmed by the second death. Read Revelation 2:8–11.
Now compare the promise in Revelation 20:6.
Again, the second death has no authority over those participating in the first resurrection.
This strengthens the connection we've examined between the elect associated with Smyrna, their appointed testing, and the resurrection that follows.
The faithful person is not necessarily identified by avoiding suffering.
Some are preserved from a particular trial. Others endure suffering and remain faithful.
Their different experiences do not mean one group is forgotten or that another possesses the authority to declare them rejected.
We have repeatedly returned to this principle: YHWH (יהוה) knows those who belong to Him, including those whom human beings fail to recognize.
And no human institution can determine another person's place in the resurrection by claiming authority over God's judgment.
The Thousand Years — Reign and Restraint
Revelation 20 describes Satan being bound and confined for a thousand years, during which he is prevented from deceiving the nations in the manner described.
The same chapter describes the reign associated with those participating in the first resurrection.
After the thousand years, Satan is released for a little while. He then goes out to deceive the nations and gather them for battle. Read Revelation 20:1–10.
We have previously examined the thousand years alongside Psalm 90:4, 2 Peter 3:8, and the appointed rest in Hebrews 4.
We also considered the possibility that this measurement represents a prophetic interval rather than being reduced immediately to an ordinary human calendar.
The important relationship concerns what takes place during the appointed period.
Reign. Restraint. Protection. The continuing work of restoration.
Then restraint ends, deception reappears, and a final conflict follows.
We have compared this release with the revealing of the lawless one in 2 Thessalonians 2 and the shortened days of trouble described in Matthew 24.
The overlapping prophetic descriptions bring us toward the question of when restraint is removed and what happens to those who remain faithful afterward.
The First Resurrection does not erase the distinction between the appointed reign and the events that follow Satan's release.
The Mystery — At the Last Trumpet
Paul introduces another important statement in 1 Corinthians 15:51–52.
He speaks of a mystery, of transformation, and of the last trumpet.
The dead are raised incorruptible, and a change takes place.
Now return to Revelation 10:7.
The mystery of God reaches its appointed completion in the days of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound.
Revelation 11 then describes the witnesses' rising, the earthquake, the passing of the second woe, and the sounding of the seventh angel, announcing the kingdom. Read Revelation 10:7 and Revelation 11:11–19.
These are important anchors in our study of the First and Last.
Christ's resurrection as Firstfruits begins the work. The body is prepared. The appointed union reaches its fulfillment. The resurrection and gathering continue according to the order YHWH (יהוה) has established.
The mystery has an appointed completion.
And the seventh trumpet cannot be overlooked when examining that fulfillment.
The beginning of the restoration should not be mistaken for the completion of the mystery.
The Head and Feet — Until the Enemies Are Subjected
Psalm 110 describes the one seated at the right hand of YHWH (יהוה), awaiting the subjection of enemies beneath his feet.
Hebrews 10:12–13 preserves the relationship between Christ's enthronement and the waiting that follows.
Paul then speaks of Christ reigning until all enemies are placed beneath his feet, with death being the last enemy abolished. Read 1 Corinthians 15:24–28.
Within our earlier studies, we have followed Christ as the First, the preparation of the body, and his appearing as the Last with the Bride before the gathering of the elect.
That relationship should not be lost when reading about the first resurrection.
The Head is not the entire body considered apart from its members.
And the completion of the spiritual body belongs to the wider mystery of the one new man and the developing dwelling.
The resurrection order is inseparable from the identity of Christ and the members joined to him.
What of Those Who Do Not Participate in the First Resurrection?
Revelation 20 also describes the rest of the dead and later the great white throne judgment.
Books are opened, including the book of life. Death and Hades give up the dead in them, and judgment takes place. Read Revelation 20:5, 11–15.
Now consider John 5:25–29, where Jesus speaks of the dead hearing his voice and living, and of those in the tombs coming forth.
Daniel 12:2 likewise describes sleepers awakening, but with different outcomes.
These passages bring us toward the larger resurrection and judgment that follow the first.
We should not assume that the description of the first resurrection exhausts every opportunity for life described throughout Scripture.
Nor should the first resurrection's special assurance concerning the second death be automatically applied to everyone else.
The different outcomes and appointed roles must be preserved.
This is one reason we've continued distinguishing the remnant, the elect, and the later great crowd rather than merging them into a single group.
The Great Crowd — Shepherded Toward Living Waters
Revelation 7 describes an innumerable multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue.
They come out of great tribulation, have washed their robes, and stand before the throne and the Lamb.
Yet the account continues with the Lamb shepherding them toward fountains of living waters. Read Revelation 7:9–17.
That is important.
Their deliverance leads into continued shepherding.
We have previously examined the living waters in Ezekiel 47 and Revelation 21–22, where life, healing, and the invitation to the thirsty remain central.
Within our developing Landscape, we've considered whether the great crowd's emergence may correspond with the final worldwide tribulation, after the earlier resurrection and gathering.
That timing remains open for continued comparison.
But the distinction remains: the first resurrection and the great crowd are described through different accounts, promises, and experiences.
And the invitation to life extends beyond the initial preparation of those who rise first.
The Life That Follows — Until God Is All in All
Paul concludes his resurrection-order discussion in 1 Corinthians 15 by describing the abolition of opposing rule, authority, and death.
The Son then delivers the kingdom to God the Father, so that God may be all in all.
Now compare Revelation 21–22.
Death, mourning, crying, and pain are removed. The dwelling of God is with His people. The river of life flows, the tree of life bears fruit, and healing is described for the nations.
The Spirit and the Bride extend the invitation to come and receive the water of life freely. Read Revelation 21:1–7 and Revelation 22:1–17.
These passages return us to the purpose of the restoration.
The First Resurrection is important, but Scripture's picture does not end there.
The wider work involves the abolition of death, the restoration of life, and the fulfillment of the purpose of YHWH (יהוה).
The First leads toward what follows.
And the Last brings us toward the completion of what was appointed from the beginning.
Where the Word Leads
We began with Christ the Firstfruits and the spiritual body consisting of many members.
Paul described the dead in Christ rising first. Daniel described Michael arising during the time of trouble. Revelation 11 described the witnesses receiving the Spirit of life and standing before the seventh trumpet.
Revelation 20 then brought us to those who participate in the first resurrection and the assurance that the second death has no authority over them.
We also examined the thousand years, the later release of Satan, the wider resurrection and judgment, and the restoration of life that follows.
Throughout these accounts, one distinction remains essential.
The First Resurrection is not the end of every appointed work.
It belongs within the resurrection order, the preparation of the spiritual body, and the mystery YHWH (יהוה) brings toward its completion.
For now, I leave this question:
If Christ is the Firstfruits and the members belong to his one spiritual body, are we following the appointed order through which YHWH (יהוה) brings that body toward fullness, or have we mistaken the beginning of resurrection for its entire completion?
The First has arisen. The appointed work continues. And the life promised through Christ reaches toward the restoration that follows.
Threads to Follow
- Christ the Firstfruits and resurrection order: 1 Corinthians 15:20–28, 42–52.
- The spiritual body and its members: 1 Corinthians 12:12–27; 2 Corinthians 5:16–17; Ephesians 2:14–22; 4:13–16.
- The dead in Christ rise first: 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17; Daniel 12:1–3.
- The witnesses receiving the Spirit of life: Revelation 11:7–15; 1 Peter 3:18–22.
- The First Resurrection and second death: Revelation 20:4–6; Revelation 2:8–11.
- The thousand years and release: Revelation 20:1–10; 2 Thessalonians 2:3–12.
- The mystery and last trumpet: 1 Corinthians 15:51–52; Revelation 10:7; 11:15–19.
- The Head, feet, and appointed reign: Psalm 110:1; Hebrews 10:12–13; 1 Corinthians 15:24–28.
- The wider resurrection and judgment: John 5:24–29; Revelation 20:11–15; Daniel 12:2.
- The great crowd and living waters: Revelation 7:9–17; Ezekiel 47:1–12; Revelation 21–22.
Connected studies in this series
- Post Five — The First and the Last: Christ Enthroned, the Union Completed: The beginning and appointed completion of the spiritual body.
- Post Six — The Bride: One Woman, Not the Multitude: The singular Bride and the union distinguished from the wider household.
- Post Nine — The Two Witnesses: Heaven and Earth, Male and Female: The witnesses rising after receiving the Spirit of life.
- Post Twelve — The Third Day: From Darkness to Awakening: The spiritual resurrection and temple of his body.
- Post Sixteen — The Sealed Remnant: Known, Marked, and Preserved: The sealed servants, firstfruits, and distinctions among the groups.
- Post Seventeen — Gathering of the Elect: The Trumpet, the Angels, and Those Who Remain: The dead rising first and the appointed gathering that follows.
The books were opened…
🌿 Studies by Maria Emilia ~ 🗺️ Continue exploring: Visit Bible Books to find studies organized by book of the Bible, along with related studies and links.
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